The president's office had no qualms about the insult, including it in their official transcript of the press conference.
ADVERTISEMENTUS President Joe Biden had some choice words at a news conference on Monday when a microphone caught him referring to a Fox News reporter as a “stupid son of a bitch”.
As journalists left the room following the event, reporter Peter Doocy asked Biden whether “inflation is a political liability”.
The president responded: “No, it’s a great asset. More inflation,” before adding “What a stupid son of a bitch,” apparently unaware the microphone was still on.
The remark came at the end of a White House Competition Council meeting, where Biden and other officials provided an update on efforts to combat inflation and fielded questions from the press.
Journalists admitted to not being able to hear what Biden actually said about Doocy due to the noise in the room at the time.
Doocy himself later shrugged off the insult in an interview with Fox.
“Yeah, nobody has fact-checked him yet and said it’s not true,” he said.
Similar gaffes by Biden in the past have prompted the White House to explain or roll back on his comments. But this time, the president’s office appeared to have no qualms about owning it as it published a transcript of the event that included the comment.
Doing so ensures that it passes into the official historical record.